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Children's Village

The GBF Children’s Villageis where your child’s literary adventure begins on May 21!

Can’t-miss author presentations and signings by award-winning children’s and teen authors, stage performances, writing workshops, crafts, games and contests, story time in multiple languages…the engagement, learning and fun never ends.

Monica Hesse: A features writer at The Washington Post, her newest book is “Girl in the Blue Coat”

David Lubar: Author whose novels include “Hidden Talents” and “Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie,” and whose chapter book, “My Rotten Life,” is under option for TV and film development

Kristen-Paige Madonia: Author of two young adult novels, “Invisible Fault Lines” and “Fingerprints of You”

Phyllis Reynolds Naylor: Author of 140 books for both children and adults, including “Shiloh” books and the “Alice” series. Her latest novel for young teens is “Going Where It’s Dark.”

Deborah Wiles: Author of picture books “One Wide Sky” and “Freedom Summer;” middle-grade novels: “Love, Ruby Lavender;” “Each Little Bird That Sings” and “The Aurora County All-Stars;” and two documentary novels: “Countdown,” book one of The Sixties Trilogy, and “Revolution”

Books by the Festival’s Featured Authors will be available for purchase in the Politics and Prose Book Sales tent. We encourage you to visit and support this fabulous independent book store!

IMAGINATION STATION

With storytelling, juggling, drama and dance performances, Imagination Station brings literature to life.

10:15 – 10:45:Penny Theater’sperformance of “Gingerbread Boy” and “Sam Who Never Forgets” – Friends of the Library, Quince Orchard Chapter.

11:00 – 11:30: The Mayor’s Book Club Reading Contest Awards-The Mayor and Junior Mayor of Gaithersburg will present awards to the third grade student and class that read the most books in a four-week competition, followed by entertainment by the Gaithersburg Elementary School Chorus.

11:40 – 12:10: Tales of Magic and Adventure – Twinbrook Tellers of the Dogwood Dogs 4H Club is for children of all ages. Our young storytellers do old fashioned storytelling, with no books or props in hand.

12:20 – 1:20: Book Club for Kids Podcast, with Host Kitty Felde-Local middle school students have an onstage book club discussion of the book “Al Capone Does My Shirts” by GBF Featured Author Gennifer Choldenko.

1:30 – 2:10: Story Teller Noa Baum- Stories from diverse cultures highlight our similarities, celebrate our differences and emphasize the importance of citizenship and character education. Chant, sing, move and become part of the performance!

2:15 – 3:00: Buddy Bison’s Yellowstone Adventure-Butterflies flutter, birds soar, and geysers burst into the sky as Buddy Bison and his two new friends explore majestic Yellowstone National Park. This charming performance by the book’s author, Dr. Ilona Holland, is sprinkled with helpful tidbits about the park, weird-but-true facts about the animals, and more fun facts kids adore.

3:05 – 3:50: Fizzical Fairy Tales-The Selfish Giant learns that sharing leads to good friendships and a warm heart. This adaption of an Oscar Wilde classic includes puppets, participation from its young audience members, and a wholesome message for the children to take home.

4:00 – 4:30: Nicolo the Jester of Nicolo Whimsey- Nick Newlin, author and performing storyteller brings stories to life as Nicolo the Jester. Watch as he combines amazing juggling with storytelling, poetry, comedy, music, and character acting all while encouraging children to join the merry love of reading and words. Nick will also be selling his new series, “The 30-Minute Shakespeare.”

4:40 – 5:15: The Giggling, Wiggling Book Worm-Dance, sing, wiggle and giggle as the book worm in you finds an exciting new story to read, write, draw, dance, make music, and of course tell other stories about. If you have a big imagination, love to tell tales and want to learn more, sit down, settle in, and get ready to listen and play.

WRITING WORKSHOPS

The Children’s Village is offering 8 free writing workshops for elementary and middle school students, led by authors, illustrators and writing professionals.

10:00 – 11:00:Build a Story with LEGOs! with Erin Sowa of LEGO Education:LEGO Education StoryStarter is a hands-on learning tool that enhances elementary students’ reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills by using LEGO bricks from the StoryStarters set. Participants will build a story, and also receive a workshop kit that they can take home!

11:00 – Noon:Creating a Picture Book, Step By Step with Harold “Corky” Logsdon & Kristen Egan: Participants will experience the exciting path from how ideas from a walk down an isolated lane in a marsh can be turned into a piece of literary art in the form of a children’s picture book. From writing to drawing the author and illustrator will bring their book “Marsh Mellow” to life. Kristen will direct the children through their drawing a blue heron (or other) set in the marsh setting. If time permits, Corky will guide the children as they answer the question “When I grow up I …” and add it to their own drawing they can take home.

Noon – 1:00:Creating a Memorable Character: The Truth Is in the Details withYA novelist and writing teacher Carol Westreich Solomon: Do your characters come alive on the page? Make your characters memorable by giving them more than just names, ages, and hair color. Through a guided prompt, invent details that create dimension in your characters.

1:00 – 1:30:How to Write a Really Boring Bookwith 2016 GBF Featured Author Laura Gehl:Laura will talk to kids about the elements of a Really Boring Book…and how to avoid accidentally writing one! In the course of this workshop, elementary age students will learn about plotting, pacing, humor, and how to sneak in a little bit of educational value without taking away from the pleasure a reader experiences. The workshop will be highly interactive and include elements of improvisational drama to help generate NOT-boring ideas.

1:30 – 2:30:Book Dummies; What They Are and How To Make Them with 2016 GBF Featured Author Timothy Young: Book dummies are books that are mocked up in order to show an editor, agent or publisher what a book might look like when finished. Book dummies can be very rough or look almost exactly like a published book. Timothy Young will show samples of some dummies (including pop-up books!) and help students to make their own.

2:30 – 3:30:Drawing Dragons and Monsterswith2016 GBF Featured Author and Illustrator Steve Light: Kids will be guided step-by-step through creating their own unique dragons and monsters.

3:30 – 4:30:Comics Character Team Up with author Dave Roman (Astronaut Academy): Join Dave for an interactive workshop that’s all about developing unique characters and collaborating with fellow artists to create unexpected comic stories full of twists and turns.

4:30 5:30: Great Comics for Kids with co-founder of All The Wonders children’s literature website, Matthew Winner: Can’t stop reading graphic novels? Good! Come check out some outstanding recently published graphic novels. Learn about our state’s graphic novel book award. Explore the different elements found on a page of a comic. Create a one page comic of your own with help from special guest Dave Roman!

STORY TIME

It’s Fun! It’s Educational! It’s Story Time!

The Story Time Tents are a place where children ages 3-12 and their families can enjoy listening to stories read in multiple languages by school media specialists, teachers, librarians, authors, pageant winners, Scholastic, and students from The Universities at Shady Grove.

Stories will be read every 30 minutes beginning at 10 a.m. in the English tent and 10:30 in the Multilingual tent.

MULTILINGUAL READING SCHEDULE

ACTIVITY BOOTHS,open all day long!

Where’s Waldo? Scavenger Hunt: This popular hunt returns, with Waldo cutouts hidden throughout the Festival. Pick up your scavenger hunt entry form and checklist at the Washington Parent Children’s Information Booth and let the race begin. Children who find all of the Waldo cutouts can enter a raffle to win a Waldo deluxe prize pack.

Rocket Row: Here you will find a slew of activity booths, brought to us by one of our top sponsors, Activity Rocket! Learn about traditional animation tools such as zoetropes and thanaumatropes with Kid Museum; Participate in games, stories and art projects taught in foreign languages with Language Stars; make a recipe book with Tiny Chefs; and enjoy reading and writing activities with Huntington Learning Center and The McLean School Summer Edge Program.

City of Gaithersburg Educational Enrichment Committee & Youth Centers: Enter for a chance to win a set of books for your Gaithersburg elementary or middle school’s library! Donate a book to Gaithersburg’s Youth Centers (appropriate for middle or high schoolers) and earn a raffle ticket for a great prize!

National Park TrustandNational Park Service:Visit Buddy Bison’s booth to learn more about your local parks, get your “Buddy Bison’s Yellowstone Adventure” book signed or purchase a Buddy Bison for your backpack.

Montgomery History: Tap, Tap, Tap into History with the opportunity to experience what it was like to type on a 1913 Royal Standard No. 5, or a 1970’s Safari portable typewriter.

Scholastic, Inc.: Take a picture with Clifford the Big Red Dog, color, listen to a story, win a chance to have Clifford visit your school!

Girl Scout Council of the Nation’s Capital: Identify your special reading place by making foam door hangers and special book marks.

B&O Railroad: Join Choo Choo and her good friends, Stationmaster Sue, Conductor Cap and Engineer Coal for story time and activities, including a felt board and wooden animal train.

Montgomery College Early Childhood Club: Engage in crafts and activities that bring Dr. Seuss and the world of the Cat in the Hat to life.

D B & C Home Restorations LLC: Free face painting, featuring a selection of storybook characters including Clifford the Big Red Dog, The Cat in the Hat and Winnie the Pooh.

Modern Eyes: Free vision screenings for kids.

Pets On Wheels: Read a book to an adorable dog.

Let’s Play America: Pat Rumbaugh, author of “Let’s Play at the Playground,” will lead fun playground activities, and sell and sign her book.

Can't stop reading graphic novels? Good! Come check out some outstanding recently published graphic novels. Learn about our state's graphic novel book award. Explore the different elements found on a page of a comic. Create a one page comic of your own with help from special guest Dave Roman!

Do your characters come alive on the page? Make your characters memorable by giving them more than just names, ages, and hair color. Through a guided prompt, invent details that create dimension in your characters.

Kids will learn about the elements of a Really Boring Book...and how to avoid accidentally writing one! In the course of this workshop, elementary age students will learn about plotting, pacing, humor, and how to sneak in a little bit of educational value without taking away from the pleasure a reader experiences. The workshop will be highly interactive and include elements of improvisational drama to help generate NOT-boring ideas.

Book dummies are books that are mocked up in order to show an editor, agent or publisher what a book might look like when finished. Book dummies can be very rough or look almost exactly like a published book. Timothy Young will show samples of some dummies (including pop-up books!) and help students to make their own.

LEGO Education StoryStarter is a hands-on learning tool that enhances elementary students’ reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills by using LEGO bricks from the LEGO Education StoryStarters set. Participants will build a story, and also receive a workshop kit that they can take home!

Participants will experience the exciting path from how ideas from a walk down an isolated lane in a marsh can be turned into a piece of literary art in the form of a children's picture book. From writing to drawing the author and illustrator will bring their book "Marsh Mellow" to life. Kristen will direct the children through their drawing a blue heron (or other) set in the marsh setting. If time permits, Corky will guide the children as they answer the question "When I grow up I …” and add it to their own drawing they can take home.

In this workshop Writopia instructors will help college-bound high schoolers identify unique and meaningful personal stories and tell them in their authentic voices. Instructors provide guidance on structure and editing and will help students explore themes, expand on ideas and create drafts.

Spoken word poetry has inspired many generations to step up to the blank page and express themselves, and then take the mic on stage to perform that poetic expression. Teens from the DC Youth Poetry Slam Team will lead this writing workshop with help from their coach, hoping to engage and inspire participants with creative writing that rises up from the page. Participants will write and share poetry based on prompts and activities developed by the Slam Team. No experience necessary, but having fun is mandatory.

Make your very own pop-up book! Join Robert Sabuda for a special workshop as everyone gets busy making their own pop-ups. Robert will teach a variety of simple techniques that can be used for making cards, invitations and, with a little practice and imagination, your very own book!

Do you like writing fantasy?, realistic fiction? , or are dystopian worlds more your style? If you do, then this workshop is for you! Writers will be encouraged to create a piece of fiction through original Writopia creative writing games while getting stellar feedback from published authors trained in our method. At the end of the workshop, writers are encouraged to read their work and receive constructive feedback from fellow writers and instructors.

For more than a century, artists and storytellers have been taking stories that existed in their heads and placed them into a series of panels to make comic strips and books. In this workshop, children will learn how to craft their own comic books, starting with an idea and characters that exist in some continuous space and moving them into a series of moments that tell an exciting and engaging story. The workshop will cover the process of making a comic book – from an idea to a story and even to the printing, folding and stapling – in order to encourage them to make their own whenever they have a story to tell.

Children will be provided a short intro to the concept of book arts and will create their own artist’s “tunnel book”. Participants will be challenged to create a book in this 3-D format, as well as to integrate the shape of the book with their story. For younger children, pre-cut and assembled templates will be provided.

In this workshop Writopia instructors will help college bound high schoolers identify unique and meaningful personal stories and tell them in their authentic voices. Instructors provide guidance on structure and editing and will help students explore themes, expand on ideas and create drafts.

This workshop will have discussions about the art of comic book covers along with an ink and color showcase. The workshop will discuss how an Inker adds dimension to an illustration by defining the moods and setting of the penciler’s drawing. The presenters will also discuss how a Colorist takes photocopies of layouts after that have been inked and prepare them for printing, and coding the pages for color separation. During the ink and color portion of the workshop, participants will be able to choose 1 pre-drawn comic book sketch cover print to ink and color themselves.

In this interactive workshop, students will use their imaginations to create an original character and write a monologue for this character. Through games and activities, they will understand the importance of conflict in playwriting and work with a partner to create an imaginary conflict for their characters. They will then write a dialogue with their partner. At the end of the workshop, they will act out their monologues and dialogues for each other!

Spoken word poetry has inspired many generations to step up to the blank page and express themselves, then take the mic on stage to perform that poetic expression. Students from the DC Youth Poetry Slam Team will lead this writing workshop with help from their coach, Jonathan B. Tucker, hoping to engage and inspire participants with creative writing that rises up from the page. Participants will write and share poetry based on prompts and activities developed by the teenage poets on Split This Rock’s DC Youth Poetry Slam Team. No experience necessary, but having fun is mandatory.

Do you like writing fantasy? realistic fiction? or are dystopian worlds more your style? If you do, then this workshop is for you! Writers will be encouraged to create a piece of fiction through original Writopia creative writing games while getting stellar feedback from published authors trained in our method. At the end of the workshop, writers are encouraged to read their work and receive constructive feedback from fellow writers and instructors.

Find a wonderful world of activities for families in the children's Village*

Award-winning children’s and teen authors will speak about their recent books and interact with audiences in the Jim Henson and Willa Cather Pavilions throughout the day. Each presentation will be followed by a book signing. All books will be available for purchase in the Politics and Prose Book Sales Tent. We encourage you to support this fabulous independent book store.

In the GBF Children’s Village, you will also find a literary sea of activities, workshops and performances brought to us by multiple sponsors. They are designed to engage and stimulate your child’s book curiosity and interest in reading and writing.